Crime Stoppers offers reward for three Grant County men

Andy Padilla, 28, of Silver City, is wanted in connection with the aggravated burglary that occurred in Arenas Valley in July. Padilla was supposed to have turned himself in, but hasn't, the Grant County Sheriff's Department said. Grant County Crime Stoppers has offered a $500 reward for information leading to his arrest. Call Grant County Crime Stoppers at 575-538-5254. All calls to Crime Stoppers are anonymous and calls are not recorded and cannot be traced. For more information on Crime Stoppers rewards, visit crimestoppers-grantcounty.com.

SILVER CITY — The Grant County Sheriff's Office has issued warrants for three individuals wanted in connection with various crimes, and Grant County Crime Stoppers has authorized rewards of $500 for each of the suspects and information leading to their arrests.

Andy Padilla, 28, of Arenas Valley is wanted in connection with the July 2012 aggravated burglary in Arenas Valley that left Josiah Roybal dead and Padilla severely wounded. Lt. Michael Aguirre said Padilla was supposed to turn himself in after being released from the hospital, but hasn't. He may be in Arizona, Aguirre said.

Padilla, with a group of others, allegedly jumped a locked gate in front of the home on Camino Moreno, and entered the home armed with a pump action 12 gauge shotgun. When an occupant of the home saw the shotgun being pointed at his friend, he fired, killing Roybal and wounding Padilla.

In addition to the aggravated burglary, Padilla is being charged with conspiracy to commit aggravated burglary, aggravated assault, child abuse, contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Four others who were arrested and charged in that incident are still awaiting trial. They are: Elaine Merino, 38, her brother Oscar Merino, 32, her two sons, Manuel Merino, Jr., 18, and Destri Merino, 16, and Rhyker Andazola 19, (listed as Rhyker Grijalva in a previous story).

A preliminary hearing for Elaine Merino has been scheduled for Feb. 14 in Silver City Magistrate Court.

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The cases on Oscar and Manuel Merino and Rhyker Andazola have been bound over to Silver City District Court but no dates have been set yet. No information was available on Destri Merino's case because he is juvenile and those records are not public.

In a separate incident, Trevor Franco, 22, and Tanner Gonzales, 17, both of Silver City, are wanted in connection with a Jan. 7 burglary in the 5000 block of Cottonwood Road in Silver City. According to the Criminal Complaint and Affidavit for Arrest filed in Silver City Magistrate Court on Jan. 18, the victims reported that the burglary occurred sometime between 9:20 and 11:30 a.m. that day and witnesses saw the two men walking near their property carrying weapons and a black bag headed in the direction of Cottonwood Road. A Sheriff's deputy followed shoe prints in the area to an address in the 5000 block of Cottonwood Road and a treehouse in the back yard. In the treehouse, the deputy found a black sleeping bag, several weapons, and a bottle of wine.

Also recovered in the treehouse were the following items reported stolen in the burglary:

¥ A bottle of J. Roget champagne, valued at $10

¥ A Remington model 770 caliber 243 rifle, valued at $400

¥ A Marlin Firearms model 30A W caliber 30-30, valued at $250

¥ A Winchester model 94 caliber 30-30, valued at $250

¥ An unknown make model AK47S-1 caliber 7.62X3, valued at $1,000

¥ One metal magazine containing 15 live rounds of ammo, and one steel magazine containing 30 live rounds of ammo, one empty plastic magazine, total value: $100

¥ One black X1 shirt, seven live rounds of ammo, three gold chains, one gold Rolex watch, one silver Rolex watch, one silver bracelet, one New Mexico Driver's License, a prescription bottle with label removed and 60 pills with 72/14 on them. The total value for the jewelry is $500.

Aguirre confirmed that the two are brothers and that Gonzales is also known as Tanner Franco, the 16-year-old who was arrested in an Oct. 2011 burglary in Tyrone. The outcome of Franco's case in that incident is not know because juvenile records are not public record. Franco's co-defendant in that case, Clayton Cody Hunte, who was 18 at the time of the crime, received a three-year suspended sentence and three years of probation.

The brothers are each being charged with receiving stolen property at more than $2,500, a third-degree felony.

Anyone with information on the whereabouts of any of these men is urged to call Grant County Crime Stoppers at 575-538-5254. All calls to Crime Stoppers are anonymous and calls are not recorded and cannot be traced. For more information on Crime Stoppers rewards, visit crimestoppers -grantcounty.com.

In other news, Jeff Rivers, 30, of Silver City, was arrested in Las Cruces on a warrant out of the Grant County Sheriff's Office for two counts of armed robbery, a second-degree felony.